DaWo Law Firm was very happy to welcome Li Kunwu to Shanghai again for the inauguration of his new solo exhibition at ArtCN gallery, titled “In the land of Memory”. Philippe Snel talks below about his meeting with Master Li and the links between his art and our law firm:
“Our law firm established a partnership with Master Li about 5 or 6 years ago. I had discovered his books long before that and had always been intrigued both by the unconventional style of his artwork and the very powerful narrative of the stories he brought to his readers. We came to meet in person thanks to Anne-Cécile Noique, the owner of ArtCN gallery. Our relationship has grown over the years and I am honored and very grateful of the friendship Master Li has bestowed on me over the years.”
“The power of comic books as a media is often a greatly underestimated. In particular, Europe’s tradition of comics is not only limited to superheroes or newspaper “funnies”. In fact, children in Europe still today learn about the world, history, science… through comic strips. As a manner of fact, many now middle-aged Europeans will tell you that their first impressions about China came through reading of the adventures of Tintin and in particular the Bleu Lotus, of course.”
“Li Kunwu’s work clearly follows in a similar tradition. Whether it is through his books or through his paintings, Master Li’s work offers an experience of China which transcends culture and language and, as such, is accessible to everyone, and speaks to the heart and imagination of both young and old. His work tells stories about life as it is with its joys and its pains. Often beautiful but sometimes less pretty, he speaks about families, friendships, love and hate, he tells the stories of national heroes and the struggles of ordinary people. Although his work is a testament to China (and in particular to his home city of Kunming, Yunnan), it is also and at the same time, truly universal. That is why Li Kunwu is an inspiration to DaWo Law Firm; while his work has strong local roots, it still manages to bring messages and generate emotions which are understood internationally.”
Li Kunwu – In the land of memory– ongoing until July 11th at ArtCN, Bldg n° 3, 876 Jiangsu Road, Shanghai – 11am/7pm Tue-Sunday – www.artsy.net/artcn
